Authors, publishers aim to cash in on Casey Anthony

On the glossy cover of the book Sun Struck, Casey Anthony's mug shot is sandwiched between convicted child killers John Couey and Joseph Smith.

In The Murder Business, a detective-turned-television-consultant writes about the "truth" and states Anthony killed her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, in their family's home.

As Anthony sits in the Orange County Jail awaiting trial, several authors have seized the opportunity to write about Central Florida's infamous mother and daughter.

One author, Diane Fanning, devoted an entire book to the case: Mommy's Little Girl.

All three books were released last month -- at least half a year before Anthony is expected to face a jury on a first-degree-murder charge. Anthony's trial is expected to begin next summer.

The timing doesn't surprise those in and tied to the publishing industry.

"It really depends in part on how much material is available before a trial," said Jim Milliot, senior editor at Publishers Weekly.

Anthony's name has appeared more than 600 times in newspaper stories and television news transcripts since Caylee was reported missing in July 2008, according to a search of Lexis-Nexus.

Sun Struck, about "16 Infamous Murders in the Sunshine State," includes a 15-page chapter on Anthony, now 23, and Caylee Marie.

Ocala authors Robert A. Waters and John T. Waters Jr. recap the case with already-published details about Caylee's disappearance and the eventual discovery of her remains.

"If Casey had killed her child, why did she do it? Investigators theorized part of the reason was so that she could enjoy her freedom without the burden of a child," the authors wrote. "It was also believed that she had a deep-seated hatred of her mother. The venomous anger she felt toward Cindy was obvious from the recorded jailhouse conversations between the two. Had Casey murdered her child to hurt Cindy?"

The book is drawing sharp criticism from Anthony's defense team.

"Any book that includes and classifies Casey Anthony as a murderer is unethical," said Marti Mackenzie, spokeswoman for Anthony's defense team. "She is innocent until proven guilty, and it is irresponsible and flagrantly unconstitutional to label somebody a murderer unless they have been convicted."

With so much information already public in the Anthony case -- thousands of pages of investigative documents already -- the authors' challenge is to present something new.

"The whole notion of instant books about anything -- a big crime, a disaster -- has fallen off over the years because there's so much available on the Internet," Milliot said.

"It's tempting when you see something that's in the media day after day or week after week. You have to bring some sort of view point, or something at least a little different, that will get people to fork over the 10 bucks."

Mark Fuhrman, a former Los Angeles Police Department detective who gained national attention during the O.J. Simpson case, included his conversations and observations of Anthony's family in The Murder Business.

Fuhrman, working for FOX News, recounted a meeting with Caylee's grandparents, George and Cindy Anthony, in their living room.

"I looked straight at them and said gently, 'You know Caylee is dead,'" Fuhrman wrote. "There was silence. George looked at me and he just bobbed his head up and down, as if to say yes. Cindy cried quietly. I got the feeling George knew that the baby was dead and that Cindy also knew but was blocking it out."

Fuhrman says Caylee died June 16, 2008, at the Anthony family home. An exact date of death has not been established by a medical examiner.

"Exactly how that happened, we'll probably never know," Fuhrman writes. "Casey immediately started to think of how to dispose of her daughter's body."

Brad Conway, lawyer for George and Cindy Anthony, did not respond to requests for comment.

Penny C. Sansevieri, CEO of Author Marketing Experts, said the reason these books are marketed so quickly is because authors are trying to capture a story while it's fresh.

"Let's face it, the 15 minutes of fame has shrunk to 15 seconds," she said. "With so much going on ... consumers move on quickly."